


Cold Metal Boxes, Cold Metal Bodies

by YandereTomatoes



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Canon Compliant, M/M, Pre-Game Personalities (New Dangan Ronpa V3), Pre-Relationship, Robot/Human Relationships, hand holding, kiibo gets free will, mild robot existential crisis, this takes place during the prologue so it's technically
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-20
Updated: 2018-07-20
Packaged: 2019-06-13 17:00:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15369168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YandereTomatoes/pseuds/YandereTomatoes
Summary: “Do you plan to open that door and join the other participants?”Kiibo nodded.“So you’re choosing to go along with someone else’s whims?”Kiibo supposed he was, he gave another nod.“Then…” Kokichi leaned against a desk, his posture was relaxed and confident, a stark contrast to his previous disposition. “Why not go along with my whims instead?”





	Cold Metal Boxes, Cold Metal Bodies

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place during the prologue sequence, it's not an AU.  
> That being said I hope you can enjoy my characterization of Pre-Game Kiibo and Ouma, I think the Pre-Game characters have great potential and I really enjoyed writing them!

{Pitch black,}  
[ _Rebooting optic systems,_

{Pitch black,}

 _Scanning all systems,_ _  
_ _No malfunctions found]_

 

Peeling away his gloves, the robot’s fingers glided across the surfaces that surrounded him.

 

{High-density polyethylene,  
Rectangular shape,}  
[ _Match found ; Locker]_

 

He slipped his glove back on.

 

{Locking mechanism estimated to be 5mm left and 6cm down,

_Target found}_

 

He gave the lock a push and with a click the locker door creaked open.

 

_[Scanning environments;_

{Tables, chairs, blackboard,

Lockers, one empty, one occupied,

This was a classroom.

Greenery,

This area has been reclaimed by nature,}

_Conclusion ; Area has been abandoned for at least 20 years, High chance unit was brought here by Team DanganRonpa]_

 

_[{Objective; Win Danganronpa’s 53rd game}]_

A sharp breath was heard from the occupied locker,

 

_[{Initiating personality protocol}]_

 

It was a person, considering the sharp breaths and subtle shaking they were unlikely to be a threat.

 

_[Unit should not initiate unnecessary contact]_

**{Overruled.** Target is also likely to be part of the Killing Game, allies are deemed to be valuable}

 

_[Unit K1-B0 is at risk of being discovered as a robot, do not initiate contact]_

 

 **{Overruled.** Human is likely frightened and irrational, chances of being discovered are low, initiating contact}

 

_[Decision is not approved, bug report is being sent to the Iidabashi Labs]_

 

It didn’t matter, he made his way towards the locker.

The person’s breath hitched, he turned the lock and opened the locker.

 

A small person was jammed into the locker, hugging their knees,

{Wearing a gakuran, subject was likely to be male}

His frame was slim, he wore bags under his eyes and his skin was pale,  
{Subject seemed unhealthy}

 

His purple eyes looked up at K1-B0, tears balanced themselves atop his quivering lashes, the boy was shivering in fear.

 

{Picture Saved to Hard Drive}

 

_[Unnecessary, Delete picture from hard drive]_

 

{Approved, [Deleting Picture from Hard Drive}]

 

He once slipped off his glove and extended his hand out to the boy.

 

The boy seemed reluctant, his eyes darted, first trying to check if the person before him had something behind his back, then the background, then the person, then the hand.

 

A shy hand was cautiously raised, human skin met synthetic flesh. K1-B0 grasped the boy’s hand tight and pulled him out of the locker.

 

_{Rapid heart rate,_

_Low body temperature,_

Shaking body and a cold sweat,

_No illnesses detected}_

 

“Are you okay?” K1-B0 already knew the answer but human’s exchange such formalities.

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was considered unnecessary]_

 

The boy however ignored his question, instead choosing to take a look at his surroundings.

 

“Where am I?” The boy murmured to himself.

 

“I do not know our exact whereabouts” K1-B0 informed him but the boy looked surprised.

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was considered unnecessary]_

 

K1-B0 felt himself grimace, internal protocols were so persistent.

 

“Oh… Um- I’m sorry” He apologized, K1-B0 assumed it was directed towards the fact that the boy had ignored him, he couldn’t think of any other social rules that had been broken during their interaction.

 

“I’m sorry but um- could you- could you tell me your name? If- If it’s okay!”

 

“You may refer to me as Kiibo” He assured, K1-B0 would not pass as a human name so a code name was to be used in place of his model name.

 

“Kii- Kiibo? Is- Is that your given name? Are you s-sure that’s okay?” The boy’s eyes began to dart around and his face seemed tinted with a light pink. Kiibo gave a curt nod and the boy’s blood rushed to his face.

 

Was this a sign of illness? Kiibo dutifully raised his hand to the boy’s forehead.

 

_{Low body temperature,_

_Increasing heart rate,_

_No illnesses or bodily harm detected,_

_Diagnosis ; Unclear}_

 

“Are you okay?” He repeated, this time not out of formality but out of concern.

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was consi-]_

 

The boy’s heart rate suddenly stabilized, he snatched Kiibo’s hand away from his forehead and into his own hands.

 

_[Warning, yellow alert, chances of being discovered are high. Evacuate from situation.]_

 

The boy prodded and pinched at the synthetic skin that covered his metal skeleton. Each press was harder, each press was closer to his metallic core.

 

“You’re… cold.” The boy mumbled, eyes still peeled to Kiibo’s hand, tracing the artificial creases with his finger.

 

**_[Warning, yellow alert, chances of being discovered are high. Evacuate from situation]_ **

 

Kiibo grabbed the curious boy’s hands and intertwined their fingers together, he gently lay their hands onto the desk in front of him.

 

The boy froze, Kiibo moved his face closer to the boy’s, the edge of his hat tilted upwards and he pressed their foreheads together.

 

“So are you.”

 

_[Actions not in line with expected behaviour, explain]_

 

{Objective was to stop him from discovering unit as robot, attempt was to divert his suspicions by performing an action that would in interpreted as affectionate. Strategy was provided by Doctor Iidabashi’s anime collection}

 

_[Was unit successful?]_

 

The boy was still frozen, mentally processing what was happening, then like a buffer bar the realization hit him.

 

Heart rate skyrocketed, he began to mumble mostly incoherently, sorry being the only word to come out clearly.

 

_[{Unit was successful, bug report needn’t be filed}]_

 

Kiibo pulled away.

 

The boy took a few moments to ground himself mentally before settling into an uncomfortable silence.

 

Kiibo bore holes into the boy who was doing his best to not meet his eyes, Kiibo opened his mouth.

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action will be considered unnecessary]_

 

Kiibo closed his mouth, instead choosing to simply point at the boy.

 

“U-Um? Oh me? Ar-Are you asking my name?” Kiibo gave a nod “I-I’m sorry! I sho-should have t-told you af-after you intro- introd- duced yourself! I’m so sorry! Ple-please d-don’t be mad…”

 

Kiibo shook his head, he wasn’t mad but the boy stayed silent for a moment, had he perhaps reacted incorrectly here?

 

“It’s Ou-Ouma, Kokichi Ouma”

 

“Ouma” Kiibo repeated.

 

{Saving Data Entry to Hardrive}

 

“N-no! U-Um… I-If I’m c-calling you K-Kiibo… Umm” Ouma left his sentence unfinished but the message was understood. Humans were to be treated with respect but since he was presenting himself as human he would have to discard what had been so ingrained into him.

 

“Kokichi then.” Kokichi’s face went red and his heart rate briefly picked up, he hid his mouth behind his fingers but Kiibo could tell what he was hiding, an uncontrollable smile.

 

The room fell into a silence, the reality of the situation was beginning to sink in once again.

 

They didn’t know where they were or why they had been brought here, they couldn’t even be too sure of each other, their exchanges so far could have all been full of lies.

 

The situation was tense.

 

“I think um… We should… We should try to g-get out of here” A quiet voice broke the silence.

 

A reasonable suggestion, nothing good would come of staying put.

 

Kiibo nodded and headed towards the door, it didn’t appear to have a lock so chances were it may open.

 

“Ah! No!” Kokichi raised his voice to both his and Kiibo’s surprise.

 

“Ahh…” His heart rate picked up again, tears were beginning to form in his eyes. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry”

 

Kiibo didn’t know why Kokichi was panicking so frequently, there had to be a reason for his stress.

 

Perhaps it was simply from the situation? He would have to change his approach regardless.

 

Kiibo was going to have to change his approach towards Kokichi, from what he had seen the human seemed to be relatively intuitive. If not for his anxious state he may have figured out Kiibo’s identity as a robot much too quickly.

 

He was going to have to coax him into a more relaxed state, he was going to have to be verbal with him.

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action will be considered unnecessary]_

 

Sometimes Kiibo wished he could turn off his guidance program.

 

_[You do not have the authority to turn off the Iidabashi Guidance Initiative]_

 

Humans were lucky, robots can not experience the white noise phenomenon.

 

“Kokichi, what do you think our next move should be?” Kiibo asked, snapping Kokichi out of his bumbling state.

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was considered unnecessary]_

 

“W-Well, it’s n-not that the door is a b-bad idea… It’s just…” Kokichi stopped, he hesitated for a moment before asking, “K-Kiibo, have you heard of Danganronpa?”

 

Had Kokichi arrived to the same conclusion as him? Kiibo nodded.

 

“Um… Well, d-did you a-audition for the 53rd Killing Game?”

 

Kiibo hesitated for a moment, he had filmed an audition tape but was this information okay to leak? He didn’t see any reason to lie so he nodded.

 

“I-I’m not sure where we are, but do you think- I think we’re at the 53rd Killing Game.”

 

Kokichi had come to the same conclusion as him.

 

“I think so too” Kiibo affirmed

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was considered unnecessary]_

 

“W-well, if we are in Danganronpa… I d-don’t think we should go through the door, they’re probably waiting for us somewhere in there.”

 

Kiibo was confused, “Did you not sign up to do this?”

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was considered unnecessary]_

 

“N-No! W-well I mean I g-guess I kind of did? I mean…” Kokichi began to mumble, “I never wanted to be a part of Danganronpa really, my parents just forced me into it but I guess I did do the audition for them so I guess I did sign up for this but-”

 

Kokichi noticed his rambling and stopped himself.

 

“D-Do you want to be here?”

 

This seemed like something Kiibo should approach cautiously, he couldn’t reveal the reason he had been signed up for this.

 

“I have a reason to be here” He answered simply.

 

“No, No, I have a reason to be here too, but…” Kokichi seemed a lot less timid than before. “Do you _want_ to participate in a Killing Game?”

 

Kiibo was taken aback. Did he want to be here? His goal was to win the 53rd season of Danganronpa but did he actually want that?

 

He thought about it, winning Danganronpa didn’t mean anything to him, it wasn’t exactly his goal, it was his creator’s goal.

 

He didn’t really want to achieve his creators goal, he was just going to because he was created to do exactly that.

 

But if he didn’t want to achieve his goal, what did he want? Could he ever want anything?

 

If he didn’t fulfill his creator’s wants and he had no wants of his own to fulfill then what was the point of his existence?

 

Kiibo felt like he needed to charge but he was at 97% battery.

 

Kiibo shook his head, he didn’t know what he wanted but he didn’t want this.

 

_[Bug report is being issued and sent off to the Iidabashi Labs]_

 

“If neither of us want this I think we should try to escape instead.” What he said made sense but Kiibo couldn’t help but still feel hesitant.

 

“There is nothing in this world for me if I escape from here.” Kiibo knew there was nothing he could do, if he escaped he would just be tracked and reset by the Iidabashi Lab.

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was considered unnecessary]_

 

The idea of a Killing Game did not appeal to him but maybe it was better than doing nothing after all?

 

“M-Me neither… There’s nothing I can come back to…” They were in the same boat, what was the point?

“B-But… If there’s nothing out there for me, I’ll just make myself somewhere to belong.”

 

As if it’s that simple, it’d be even harder for a robot, Kiibo wasn’t convinced.

 

“Do you plan to open that door and join the other participants?”

 

Kiibo nodded.

 

“So you’re choosing to go along with someone else’s whims?”

 

Kiibo supposed he was, he gave another nod.

 

“Then…” Kokichi leaned against a desk, his posture was relaxed and confident, a stark contrast to his previous disposition. “Why not go along with my whims instead?”

 

He hadn’t even considered that a possibility, a third option? Was it all that different from his first option? He would just be receiving orders from a different source.

 

Along with the fact that Iidabashi Labs would be chasing after him, while initially appealing this option had too many disadvantages.

 

“What are your whims?” He needed to gain more information, part of him did want it to be a viable option.

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was considered unnecessary]_

 

“A-Ahh, oh no… Um- I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make it sound like you should live for me or do everything I want oh god that’s really rude and pretentious I’m not like that I swear I’m sorry, I’m sorry, It’s just t-t-that if you have nothing else you want I just thought you could maybe help me out oh no that’s really selfish isn’t it? I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry-” Kokichi backpedaled, his confidence seemingly gone.

 

Kiibo sighed “You aren’t answering the question, Kokichi, what is it you desire?”

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was considered unnecessary]_

 

Kokichi stopped, tucking his hair behind his ear bashfully.

 

“A-ah, I j-just want to live a peaceful life.”

 

Kiibo weighed his options.

 

He could participate in Danganronpa, beat the Killing Game and return to Iidabashi Labs.

 

Or…

 

He could join Kokichi, a human he was barely acquainted with, escape from Danganronpa, be tracked by members of Iidabashi Labs and attempt to live a peaceful life.

 

Would it even be possible for him to live a peaceful life while being tracked? It seemed unlikely but…

 

Kiibo didn’t want to kill any humans.

 

Maybe if Kiibo joined Kokichi he could find something for him to want?

 

It was a dumb thought, he didn’t even know if it was possible for him to want anything, yet…

 

He wanted to want something.

 

_[Unit does not have authority to edit objective]_

 

Kiibo had made his choice, he walked away from the door and towards Kokichi, the vessels in which he had placed his hope.

 

“How do you suggest we escape from here?”

 

_[Unit is instructed to not speak unless necessary, this action was considered unnecessary]_

 

Kokichi beamed, unable to hide how happy he was that Kiibo had decided to help him.

 

“W-well I think we should try the windows” Kokichi pointed towards the blue tinted windows, the windows that were blocked by iron rods.

 

“The rods will prevent us from exiting through the window.” Kiibo stated simply.

 

“Ah but you c-could get rid of them, couldn’t y-you?”

 

It took Kiibo a minute to process, what would give Kokichi the idea that he had the strength to break metal bars? Then it hit him.

 

 **_[Red alert, red alert, identity discovered._ ** **_Destroy target immediately]_ **

 

“... What gave it away?” Had Kiibo really been that unable to pass as human?

 

 **_[Red alert, red alert, identity discovered._ ** **_Destroy target immediately]_ **

 

“W-well, you did come off a bit strange but it’s not that…”

 

 **_[Red alert, red alert, identity discovered._ ** **_Destroy target immediately]_ **

 

Kokichi wrapped his arms around Kiibo’s torso, burying his face into the crook of his neck.

 

“I… can’t touch humans, it’s terrifying to me... it disgusts me.” Kokichi tightened his grip.

 

“But, when you touched me, it was okay.” He confessed.

 

There was a moment of silence between them, Kiibo wasn’t sure how to feel about the situation, getting found out was supposed to be a bad thing, was this okay?

 

Kokichi suddenly pulled back, “A-Ah! I’m sorry! E-even if you’re a robot I sh-should respect y-your p-per-personal boundaries!” ****  

 

 **_[Red alert, red alert, identity discovered._ ** **_Destroy target immediately]_ **

 

Kiibo pulled Kokichi back into an embrace.

 

He could feel Kokichi, his heart rate, his body temperature, his bone structure, his muscle density. He could feel it all.

 

When he was monitoring Kokichi, everything else was minimized, it was so much quieter.

 

“I want to touch you Kokichi.”

 

His heart rate skyrocketed and his face burst into a shade of red.

 

Had Kiibo said something wrong? Kokichi must have misunderstood.

 

“I want to **feel** you Kokichi” he re-worded.

 

He didn’t think Kokichi’s heart rate could go any higher yet he was being proven wrong.

 

“I-I-I d-d-d-don’t t-th-think I-I’m r-r-read-y! U-umm t-t-this is g-g-g-going t-too f-f-fast”

 

It seemed that Kokichi had misunderstood again, he’d just have to tell him with his body instead.

 

He discarded a glove and took Kokichi’s hand into his own, intertwining their fingers.

 

“Kokichi, may I hold your hand?”

 

“W-W-wait! Huh? M-M-my hand?” Kokichi seemed surprised for some reason.

 

Kiibo nodded.

 

Kokichi fell to the floor, still holding Kiibo’s hand. He was mumbling something about ‘getting the wrong impression’ but his body showed no signs of physical pain.

 

Humans sure are complicated.

 

After waiting for Kokichi to regain his composure he helped the boy up and they made their way towards the windows.

 

Thick steel bars, barbed wire and to Kiibo’s surprise, the glass was not reinforced.

 

He would have to remove at least 3 bars for the to fit through easily, there was nothing in the room to help them break the window quietly.

 

Even if they had taken all their clothes off and attempted to use them to muffle the sound it would not have been enough to hide the sound of the glass breaking. The glass falling to the floor would inevitably cause a racket on the other side.

 

There was no way to be stealthy in their approach.

 

The tinted windows could not be seen through and chances were the walls were soundproofed. There was no way to tell what was on the other side of the window.

 

They’d have to take a chance, he’d get rid of all the bars, ripping away the barbed wire would damage his synthetic flesh but would not cut deep enough to harm any of his sensors.

 

With those cleared his best options would be to pick up Kokichi, jump through the window, breaking it and run.

 

He relayed his plan to Kokichi who reluctantly agreed, he could not think of any alternatives.

 

The barbed wire was embedded into the wall, he’d had no choice but to rip it out.

 

Without an ounce of hesitation Kiibo grabbed the barbed wire, tearing his synthetic skin and causing Kokichi to wince.

 

Tossing the wires onto a table, Kiibo moved on to the steel bars.

 

Being a robot he was considerably stronger than the average human, he crushed the metal bars with ease and he slid them out of their slots.

 

With the window cleared, there was only one thing left to do.

 

“Kokichi are you prepared?”

 

“L-Let’s do it”

 

He picked up Kokichi, supporting his legs and his back, holding him close to his chest.

Heartbeat was stable,

Perspiration levels were regular,  
Body temperature levels were the same as before.  
 

They had no way of knowing what was in store for them, perhaps all that lay in the way of their escape was this window, perhaps the window was all that protected them from an immediate demise.  
 

Kiibo had lots of functions but none of them could be used to predict the future.

He could only speculate,

{High probability of failure}

 

Even if there was a 99.99% chance of failure Kiibo still felt he should try, for the first time since his creation Kiibo wanted something.

Kiibo wanted to want something, it’s funny how wants seem to pile on top of each other, human emotions were so illogical.  
 

Kokichi was ready to lay his life down for a chance to fulfill his dream, Kiibo was too.  
  


Both boys filled with resolve, Kiibo took a running start towards the window.

***Crash***

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope the style wasn't too annoying to read through, next chapter will be in a different style so if you hated it I ask you still give the next one a chance!  
> Any feedback would be wonderful! I'll get the second chapter done as soon as I can.  
> [Edit: KAT MADE SOME FANART I'M DYING THANK YOU KAT](https://katastroficwriter.tumblr.com/post/176124646249/so-after-reading-this-fic-i-got-inspired-to-draw)


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